Chronicles of Tsubasa
by AoGAHC13
Summary: [Teen/Epic High Fantasy] In a world quite distant from ours, Tsubasa Andou and his trusty companions set out to slay a dragon.
1. Part I: Premise

**The Chronicle of Tsubasa**

**Theme: **Teens (ages 14 - 21)

**Prompt: **Epic High Fantasy.

**Note: **This is for the AoGA House Cup 2013 Last Stand. (See profile for more details.) Please rate accordingly (see the footnote in the final chapter).

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**PART I: Premise**

Deep in the Archives of the Academy, there exists a rather curious and mysterious book. A chronicle of events, past, present, and future, this tome appears within the Archives at an unknown and unspecified period. The accuracy of it is doubted, though there are some that have proposed it to have been written by a man with the Alice of being able see into different time periods and dimensions. Considering the prose, the tome is likely to have been written in the early twentieth/ late nineteenth century, with a fixed orthography that is highly definitive of that time period.

What is noteworthy about this log is that it also accounts for a variety of worlds and alternate dimensions. The tome is largely a collection of stories from this world and the dimensions and various other worlds beyond it.

In it, of course, there are many stories of chivalry, love, and war, amongst others. A 'Tree of Life' of sorts, it is in this book that one may find the curious tale of Tsubasa Andou in a world rather distant from ours.

Being a student enrolled in our Academy at present, this represents a particularly intriguing case in that the 'Tsubasa' in this old tale lived in an alternate dimension nearly five hundred years ago, and the fact that his story is one of the more detailed accounts of a world in an alternate dimension would make it appropriate if this specific tale is inspected in greater detail.

As such, this account shall be added to the official files for the scholars in this Academy to study in order to broaden general knowledge about alternate worlds/dimensions.

-Serina Yamada, Archivist/English Teacher.


	2. Part II: Prologue

**PART II: Prologue**

We shall begin our tale of Tsubasa by first giving an account of the world he lived in, which the tome describes in great detail.

Ravaged by the likes of trolls, drakes, giants, and many other monstrosities, it was a world in which the human population was a minority. Much of the lands were dominated by mythical beasts, forcing much of the human population to adopt a nomadic lifestyle.

There existed, however, an unlikely haven in the form of a Kingdom surrounded by a ring of mountains. With peaks too high for any monster to scale, the Alice Kingdom, as it was called, served as an enclave and one of the strongest bastions of human civilization. This is echoed by the author in the tome:

_"In a land plagued by creatures most vile, the Alice Kingdom was a haven._

_With a protection almost reminiscent of the Divine, the Kingdom and its surrounding lands were thought to be impregnable, the peaks nigh impossible for any threat to scale._

_A fortress of unimaginable strength, the greatest stronghold of humanity."_

As such, it was a land of peace and stability, almost unlike the wilderness around them. The author did not speak much about the world beyond the ring of peaks, but one can almost assume that life in the wilderness beyond is harsh, and people who lived beyond the walls were either grizzled warriors or people not likely to live long. The author summarily described the world beyond the Kingdom as 'Hell on Earth', indicative of the terrifying world of monsters beyond the mountains.

The Kingdom, as accounted by the author of the tome, was established when a band of elven and human warriors and magi managed to make it past the peaks by sheer luck and determination. The resource-rich lands led to the creation of a settlement that expanded into the Kingdom that is seen in this story. Although self-sufficient, much in part thanks to the elven Magi, the land had not progressed far past the Steel Age due to the high reliance of the general populace on the Magecraft of these skilled wizards. The skills passed down by the generations of magi before them.

The Kingdom consisted of three roughly concentric rings of settlements. The Outer ring and largest part of the Kingdom consisted of farmland and rural villages and towns. The bulk of the Kingdom's food production and working class came from this particular area in the Kingdom. The middle class, consisting of mostly traders and craftsmen, lived in the Outer City, the middle of the three rings. The Outer City held most of the amenities, such as healers, the market, and a variety of other artisans and craftsmen. Lastly, the nobility, wealthy, and upper class inhabited the innermost part of the Kingdom, in an area known as the Inner City. The Inner City consisted of the court and the royal throne which the Duke of the lands, Izumi Yukihira, ruled the land from.

It was in this Kingdom that the protagonist and subject of this tale, Tsubasa Andou, lived in.

The son of a carpenter, he lived with his family in a village called Ahnenerbe, an outlying settlement near the edge of the Kingdom.

In a Kingdom that knew not about the savagery of the monsters around them, having experienced nearly half a century of peace, it was not unexpected that Ahnenerbe had little to no guards. Mainly there to police the population, the military had nearly no ability to engage monsters, should any manage to attack. The Captain of the guard in this village was Shiki, an upright and humble man.

At the beginning of this tale, Tsubasa was only eight years old, and was seen to be highly playful; he was a single child, with both his parents giving him a rather poor but still comfortable existence. His best friend, Kaname Sono, was of the same age, and was an apprentice of Tsubasa's father.

The son of the village healer, Kaname, was a somewhat quiet and withdrawn character, and the calmer of the two friends. The cool-minded foil to Tsubasa's rash personality, their relationship was one that was highly indicative of the idea that 'opposites attract'.

The tome described their relationship as one of 'brotherly companionship, childhood friends with a bond forged by shared experiences.' It was also said that Tsubasa had absolute trust in Kaname, and vice versa. The author of the tome went on to liken their relationship to that of Achilles and Patroclus, best friends both in life and death, indicative of the highly intimate bond they shared with each other.

The village of Ahnenerbe lived in relative peace, with few domestic conflicts. The small community was bonded, and everyone lived a life of simple happiness.

_"Ahnenerbe was a very simple and small town._

_Situated near the mountains, it had both the benefit of fresh air and idyllic scenery._

_Aside from its beautiful scenery, Ahnenerbe was also renowned throughout the Kingdom for their excellent produce."_

As described by the tome's author, Ahnenerbe was known for their produce, though the extent to which their produce is celebrated was not spoken of in detail.

As such, given such an idyllic scene, it was highly unexpected that monsters would suddenly breach the peaks one day.

Approaching from the foot of one of the peaks less than ten kilometres from the village, the source of the incursion was unknown.

_"At the head of the pack of beasts, a Wyrm large and mighty flew._

_Huge even by legendary standards, the beast was said to stand nearly sixty feet head to tail, with a wingspan slightly less than twice that._

_The monstrous beast led the charge, rampaging through the lands; Ahnenerbe was one of the first to be crushed."_

Led by an enormous dragon, the monsters broke through the northern part of the Kingdom, ravaging the outlying lands. Ahnenerbe, being located so close to the place where the monsters sprung from, was decimated in the initial wave of monsters.

Tsubasa and Kaname, residents of the village, were together when the village was decimated.

They watched as their parents screamed for them to run, holding off the monsters with pitchforks in a desperate effort to ensure the survival of their children.

They fled, just as the trolls and giants massacred their family, leaving the children scarred and broken from the experience.

_"It is said that when the parents of Tsubasa fell to the demons, he let loose a terrifying roar, pledging himself to the cause of vengeance for the fallen._

_It awoke the hunger for revenge and killing intent within him, and drew the Mighty Wyrm to his person."_

The broken Tsubasa was forced to run away with Kaname at his side, the corpses of his parents distracting the beasts long enough for the pair to flee.

They rann far enough away so that by the time the monsters reached the village centre, they were already near the edge of the village.

In a stroke of serious misfortune, however, the Dragon flew past and landed in front of them, obstructing their path. However, instead of killing them, the Dragon simply ignored Kaname and bowed to Tsubasa, silently marking him with a star-shaped mark on his face. Then it flew off into the distance, away from the village and back into the mountains from which it came from.

_"The Wyrm marked him; a cursed star-shaped mark on his face that looked almost ethereal."_

At this point, Tsubasa and Kaname were too stunned to move, and were frozen in position. As the monsters closed in, they were forced to accept that their death was imminent.

That was until the Captain of the village guard, Shiki, rode into battle.

Grievously wounded, he handed them his horse, and urged them to ride to the Outer City, telling them that he will cover their retreat, in short sacrificing himself to allow them safe passage and enough time to escape.

_"Spear at the ready, he stood confident and composed, determined to hold the monsters back long enough to ensure the escape of the two children. _

_Brutally wounded in his prior facilitation of the town's evacuation, he mumbled a prayer, knowing that this battle would likely be his last._

_Even as he was mauled down by a giant, he died with a smile on his face, knowing that the escape of the children was worth his life._

_As the dust from the hooves of his horse blew past in the strong wind, he inhaled his final breath, content with his final act of heroism and martyrdom."_

As they rode off, Tsubasa added Shiki's death to the list of those he wished to avenge, and the courageous sacrifice of this man served as a catalyst and inspiration for Tsubasa's future ambitions.

He would join the military in his later years, testament to the inspirational force behind Shiki's final actions.

_"His tears spilling on the ground behind him, he swore to himself that that was the last day he would cry for the fallen._

_He would miss the warm arms that embraced him for the years to come, but he knew that the part of him that longed for such love had died with him on that very day._

_All he had left was one simple wish, a strong passion and conviction._

_He would have a burning desire to become stronger from that point on, to exact his revenge on the beasts that claimed the lives of his family and friends alike._

_He vowed to destroy the monstrosities that ravaged his peaceful childhood- that denied him of a loving family._

_ As the two friends rode off towards the Outer City and to safety, all he could think of was that. _

_That fateful day would be the last time Tsubasa Andou shed a tear."_

They rode into the distance, and become one of the many tragic refugees that survived the initial attack of the monsters on the once-peaceful Alice Kingdom. Displaced, lost, and traumatised, they found initial refuge at an orphanage before being adopted by Jinno, a courtesan that took pity on the two children. The story cut off at this point, the tome being rather vague about their lives in the Inner City.


	3. Part III: The Prophecy

**PART III: The Prophecy**

The tome continued the tale ten years into the future. The Great Incursion, as the initial assault of the monsters was now known to the people of the Kingdom, had done grievous damage to the Alice Kingdom. The initial assault, now realised to have come from a portal that mysteriously appeared in the mountains at the onset of the invasion, had led to the deaths of a large proportion of the human population.

Surprisingly though, the large dragon that had led the invasion initially disappeared into obscurity, leaving many in the inner city doubting its actual existence. It was assumed that the Wyrm was roosting in the mountains, guarding the portal that allowed monsters to enter and invade the land.

The immediate months following the Incursion resulted in what became the Great War, a mindless crusade by the displaced residents of the Outer ring on the monsters.

Out of vengeance, and generally following orders of the Duke of the lands, most of the survivors from the initial assault (largely survivors from the outlying towns and villages) were made to march to the perimeter of the Outer City, and repel the attacking monsters.

This war served as a distracting ploy, lasting for a year and allowing for a large wall to be built, sealing off the Kingdom from the rest of the monsters. Structurally reinforced by the Magi, the walls were made to withstand heavy siege attacks, though the protection was at best temporary.

In the one year that had passed after the initial incursion, the Alice Kingdom had lost nearly a quarter of their population and a good fifth of their territory.

As the portal the monsters appeared from was in one place, and the monsters did not attack from all around the outer edges of the Kingdom, the area closest to the 'Incursion portal', as it was called, was able to be quarantined from the rest of the human population with the walls.

In the years that passed after the walls were built, a time of uneasy peace settled upon the land.

_"They built a wall; a siege-proof barrier that would hold out against the beasts, albeit only for a short period of time._

_Peace in those times had been tenuous at best."_

Tsubasa, having been adopted by Jinno, a lower ranked courtesan living in the inner city, had enrolled in the military.

After ten years of constant, passionate training, Tsubasa grew to become one of the strongest and finest knights in the Kingdom. His zeal and passion earned him the respect of his comrades, and even the notice of Knight-Commander Kazumi Yukihira. The young boy who had once seemed so helpless to the threat ended up becoming a highly skilled warrior dead set on avenging the fallen.

Much like how Tsubasa dedicated himself to the military, Kaname similarly chose to dedicate himself to the path of a healer in the Kingdom. He became an apprentice under one of the most talented and prodigious healers in the Outer City, a master named Misaki-sensei. Through his training, he became a specialised and highly skilled healer, learning advanced healing techniques and skills, becoming a talented healer in his own right. Doing so would allow him to support Tsubasa in the field should they enter battle together, and the desire to heal Tsubasa was born from the fact that Kaname desired to protect his best friend and now-adopted brother.

_"While one chose the path of sword and shield, opting to take up arms against the Wyrm, the other took a complementary path, specialising in the healing arts._

_Both knew that they were complementing each other's abilities, making them a highly effective as well as deadly team on the battlefield._

_One would guard the other, and their bond of absolute trust only made their partnership and brotherhood all the more fearsome."_

As such, their partnership could be said to have only strengthened within their ten years of training and preparation for their ultimate quest to slay the Dragon.

It was on one of those days of rigorous training that Tsubasa received summons to the Court. Abiding by said summons, he was informed that he had been selected as the 'Chosen One', a man that would be the one to slay the great Dragon and free the land.

The prophecy that appointed the Chosen One (mentioned in the tome), as dictated by the court's magician Narumi, stated that Tsubasa was one of the men most suited to lead a band of two others in order to engage and slay the dragon and restore ultimate peace in the land.

_"'In my vision', he said, 'I saw a great man.'_

_'A man driven by vengeance, marked by the Almighty Wyrm itself.'_

_'He would be the one to slay it, with two steadfast companions by his side, in order to close the accursed portal of incursion and restore peace to this broken land.'"_

As such, due to the mark on his face, as well as the rumours that it had come from the Dragon, Tsubasa was appointed as the destined 'Chosen One' to slay the Dragon.

Given that the wall shielding the Kingdom at that point of time would not be able to hold out for much longer, the appearance of a saviour in the form of Tsubasa Andou was much desired, and welcomed with great intensity.

In his zeal and rashness, Tsubasa accepted the quest, eager to apply his skills and talent, as well as his new strength to finally take his revenge on the Wyrm.

_"His eagerness was infectious; the Kingdom was overjoyed, and placed their hopes in him."_

Following his appointment by the court, Tsubasa received the official decree that would open every gate, door, and road to him in the land, allowing him to engage the threat as swiftly as he could manage. With the blessing of the Knight-Commander, as well, he was granted a warrant which would allow him to obtain supplies and equipment from the trusted suppliers of the court.

He was given two weeks to prepare, and to find two worthy and willing comrades to accompany him on his trip. Given the massive damage the monsters had managed to wreak upon the population, Tsubasa was unable to find anyone else with sufficient skill and talent to come along with him. The Kingdom was unable to dispatch any assistance to him, as all military strength had been utilised for policing the population, and guarding the walls and borders, leaving no man free enough to accompany him. In addition to this, most were unwilling to join Tsubasa on his quest due to the fact that it was deemed a pseudo-suicide mission.

As such, only his sworn brother, Kaname, was able and willing to accompany him on his quest, with the two of them hoping they would find a third companion along the way.

With his warrant, Tsubasa approached a highly skilled elven blacksmith by the name of Hotaru Imai, who offered to forge a pair of weapons for him that would be unbreakable and suit his fighting style.

_"The quiet and gentle work-elf, Hotaru, was tasked to create a pair of twin swords for Tsubasa._

_With Mithril, and ancient smithing techniques, three days and nights she worked, without sleep or nourishment._

_With the skill of an artisan, she created a mighty pair of swords that complemented each other perfectly._

_Made unbreakable by her mysterious enchantments, the weapons were both works of art and deadly implements of death._

_They were absolute masterpieces."_

The blades, perfectly balanced and sharp enough to slice a steel bar in two, were prepared for Tsubasa.

However, on the day of the presentation of the blades to him, a mysterious dark-haired swordsman managed to break in and steal one half of the pair, leaving Tsubasa with only one weapon to use for his quest.

_"'Stolen?' he asked._

_'Yes, Sir. A mysterious man, clad in black stole into my shop before dawn and made off with one of the weapons before I could react. The thief disappeared into the dark, riding off on a black horse as dark as the night sky.'_

With little time left before he had to depart, he decided to give up asking her to forge another sword for him, and instead acquired food, supplies, and horses.

They set out for the wilderness the day after.

Before they left the safety of the walls, a message from the Magician, Narumi, was brought forth to them.

_"Narumi's message was simple._

_He had asked them to seek out a Wyrmspeaking hermit rumoured to live in the wilds, in order to learn how to slay the Wyrm._

_The Hermit was said to have lived in the wilderness, near the Wyrm's roost._

_It was said that only he knew the inner workings of the Wyrm, and his help would greatly assist them on their quest."_

As such, they set out with such a goal, finally breaking free of the safety of the walls.

_"As he left the walls, Tsubasa felt a sense of exhilaration._

_The wall had shielded them for the past ten years, and the thrill of finally leaving their protection in order to set out on their fateful quest was both terrifying and exciting._

_As they rode off into the distance, he realised that he could not falter._

_The hopes of all the men and women living in danger were pinned on him._

_He made for the peaks with that aura of determination about him, prepared to bring nothing but triumph home._

_Failure would not be an option."_


	4. Part IV: The Quest

**PART IV: The Quest**

As they rode forth with the hopes of the people on their backs, Tsubasa engaged monster after monster, as both him and Kaname advanced further and further into the wilderness.

The tome did not describe the minor battles much, instead stating that they moved through the forest with little trouble, destroying troll and ogre alike. They eventually reached a clearing in the middle of the forest where they decided to rest for a short while.

_"They rode to the North, slaying beasts small and large alike._

_Trolls. Goblins. Harpies._

_They all fell to the might of Tsubasa's blade and his thirst for vengeance._

_The duo cleaved their way through the forest, moving by day and resting by night, destroying any opposition that came along._

_With Tsubasa's strength and Kaname's healing prowess, they were nearly unstoppable."_

They found a brief respite from combat in that clearing, and they rested their travel-weary bodies there.

At that point in their travels, however, they came face-to-face with the dark-haired swordsman.

_"His name was Natsume Hyuuga._

_The son of the Duke's advisor, Kaoru Igarashi, he had loved the land from when he was a child._

_Seeing it ravaged hurt his heart, and so he longed with all his being to be able to take on the quest to slay the Great Wyrm._

_One of the finest knights of the Order, he was one of Tsubasa's contemporaries._

_However, when the prophecy declared Tsubasa as the Chosen One, he became bitter and jealous, as he had long desired to be the man that would save the land and slay the Wyrm._

_Unable to accept the fact that he was not the saviour of the Prophecy, he believed that the Chosen One had been wrongly proclaimed._

_He had worked and trained for most of his childhood, prepared to take down the Dragon._

_As such, his jealousy of Tsubasa led him to ride off into the wilderness by himself, in order to prove the Prophecy wrong."_

Natsume, as the mysterious man was known as, had been the one who stole Tsubasa's other blade from Hotaru's forge, and he had ridden off on his own, in a desperate bid to slay the Dragon by himself.

His jealousy drove him to engage Tsubasa in single combat at that point, in order to prove that he was superior and worthy of the title of the 'Chosen One' in place of Tsubasa.

_"They both drew their blades in the clearing, twin swords mirroring their desire to kill the dragon._

_As they clashed, the blades sounded like thunder, and the sound of steel against steel echoed repeatedly throughout the forest._

_Stab. _

_Slash._

_Parry._

_Dodge._

_They encircled one another, both with the grace and agility of master swordsmen._

_As they clashed repeatedly, Kaname could only watch on, knowing that this was a battle that he would not be able to interfere in._

_As they fought each other in the clearing, the intensity of their blows could be felt all throughout the area._

_After having engaged in intense footwork for about ten or so minutes, a thrust and parry manoeuvre in the form of a counter-attack by Tsubasa managed to disarm Natsume, and he is finally placed at the mercy of the Chosen One._

_'You opposed me because of pride._

_Now that I have shown you why the Court chose me, please, give up.'_

_As Natsume lay disarmed and exhausted on the ground, all he could do was stare back in defiance at Tsubasa."_

Having encountered a major defeat, Natsume is forced to submit and concede the title to Tsubasa, acknowledging that he was an excellent swordsman and worthy of the title.

_"As he turned around to leave, Natsume is stopped by Tsubasa._

_'You, as much as me, want to see peace restored to this land. I can see how much you wish to slay the Wyrm._

_Will you join me in my quest?"_

In light of his defeat, Natsume was invited to the party by Tsubasa, and he joined, out of willingness to slay the Dragon and his own personal goal of saving his beloved land.

_"And so, the three of the prophecy had finally gathered together._

_The Chosen One, the Healer, and the Knight._

_It was only then that the quest to slay the Wyrm truly began."_

Resting at the clearing in the aftermath of the battle, Natsume relayed information to them, telling them that he had seen a habituated hut not far off from where the clearing was.

As Narumi had previously instructed, they headed for the hut, assuming that the person who lived within would be the fabled Wyrmspeaking hermit, as mentioned in the prophecy.

_"The Fellowship moved forth towards the hut by the lake, in search of the Hermit from the prophecy."_

When they arrived at the hut, they found nobody but a young woman about their age. Surprised that such a person would actually be able to live in a place so dangerous, they spoke to the woman.

_"'Lady, this forest is dangerous. How could you be living here?'_

_The woman looks straight at Tsubasa, and sent a piercing glare that chilled him to the core._

_Her reply came, in a soft and cold voice._

_'I am no lady. I am merely a Witch of the Wilds, living amongst nature as I should.'_

_Tsubasa continued his enquiry, slightly shaken._

_'Do you know of the Wyrmspeaking hermit then, milady?'_

_'I am the hermit you seek.'_

_Tsubasa is taken aback at her statement, and continues his enquiry._

_'Would you help us then, wise hermit?'_

_'Why would I do such a thing?'_

_'Well then, are you friend or foe?'_

_'I am neither.'"_

Her cryptic replies revealed her to be a Witch of the Wilds that had been living in that hut since the Great Incursion.

_"'Our land is in tatters, milady. You, as a great Witch, should help us to save the land.'_

_'I can do no such thing.'_

_'It is said that you can show us how to slay the great Wyrm.'_

_'That I can. But such tactics and advice would be useless should one not know the form and ferocity of a dragon. You three have not even faced a single minor drake in battle.'_

_'What would you have us do then, Wise One?'_

_'You may call me Nobara.'_

_'Nobara, then. What would you have us do?'_

_'There is a drake in the woods near the lake where I live. Use this horn to draw it out, and slay it in battle. Only when you have felled the beast shall you know how the true Wyrm will act. Aim for its heart to slay it. I wish you the best of luck, brave warriors.'"_

Having been instructed to slay the drake near the lake from their conversation with the Witch, the three men healed up and ventured forth to slay the drake. After half a day of tiring searching, they eventually find the drake. They engaged it in battle, beginning a long, gruelling battle.

_"The drake noticed them, and let loose a wild roar that drew a small number of other monsters to it._

_The two swordsmen charged forth while Kaname stood back and observed the battle, prepared to heal them when they needed it._

_They began their onslaught, cleaving clean through the first wave of goblins and trolls, and managed to pave a clean path to the drake._

_As the large beast charged towards them, it tried to snatch them in their claws, in order to crush and kill them both._

_They dodged at the last moment, as the drake reared back, stopping short in its charge._

_As they bound back towards the drake, it flapped its wings, and released a huge gust of wind that blew both the swordsmen back, essentially sending them flying backwards._

_At that point, the drake shot a powerful jet of flames at the attacking duo, even as Kaname stood back and casted healing and fortification enchantments on the two warriors._

_The two warriors charged forth yet again, not affected by the show of power, and they both landed a massive strike each on the drake, severing one of its legs and tearing one of its wings open._

_As the drake reared back in pain, it released a blast of hot air, burning both Tsubasa and Natsume as they were blown back simultaneously._

_However, much to the duo's surprise, Tsubasa rose from the blast of hot air relatively unscathed._

_He approached the weakened drake and stabbed it in the heart, releasing a blast of flames and hot air that knocked him away._

_As the beast fell, Tsubasa simply stood back up, walking away from the carcass of the drake while moving the injured Natsume, granting him his support._

_As Kaname healed the two, the trio as a whole could only stare at the fallen beast, amazed at the work of their hands."_

Having slain the drake, the trio found out in the process that Tsubasa was immune to the flames of drake-kind. Realising that a dragon or drake in panic would release panicked blasts of heat from their scales, the trio came to realise that only Tsubasa would be able to land a decisive killing blow.

They returned to the Witch, and informed her of their kill.

Having finally proven themselves in light of the drake's death, the Witch handed Tsubasa a drake-skin tunic and addressed the group, informing them of one final prophecy.

_"'You have slain the beast, then. Very well, I suppose you know what you have to do now, do you not?'_

_'Yes. We will need to have Natsume distract the Wyrm while I make a decisive strike towards the beast's heart. Kaname will give support in the form of healing magic.'_

_'Your strategy is sound. I wish you the best of luck.'_

_The witch rose and sighed._

_'There is something else I must tell you. I was not meant to show you how to slay the Wyrm. I was simply meant to allow you to gain experience so that you will have a higher chance of killing the true beast.'_

_She took in another deep breath, and continued. _

_'I was meant to provide you with a final prophecy before you embark on the final leg of your Journey. Slaying the Wyrm will result in one of you falling, though his actions will ultimately save the land.'_

_'One… of us will fall?'"_

With the Witch's prophecy, the trio set off, determined to see their quest through to the end, even if it meant one of them would die and sacrifice themselves to save the land.


	5. Part V: The Final Battle

**PART V: The Final Battle**

The tome continues the story from the beast's roost, but it can be assumed that the group marched forth towards the peaks, eager to finally slay the dragon.

As they approached the beast's roost, they finally caught sight of the source of the misery in the land- the Great Wyrm.

The tome describes their battle with the Dragon in great detail.

_"As they approached the enormous Wyrm, they realised it was asleep. _

_Tsubasa prepared a sneak attack, ready to make a first strike._

_It was at that point that the Wyrm rose. _

_With a mighty roar, it looked at the three determined men who had dared to approach him, and bounded forward- its very form causing the cavern they were in to shake._

_The warriors immediately entered battle stance, while Kaname yet again fell back, ready to heal the two should they encounter trouble._

_Trolls, ogres and goblins flooded into the cavern, distracting the warriors from the Wyrm, as they were forced to move around and slay the smaller monsters in order to prevent them from being distracted._

_As they jumped around, dodged, and struck hard at the monsters, they eventually managed to carve a path large enough for them to move forward and engage the dragon directly._

_As the Wyrm charged towards them, its large footsteps shaking the ground below it, they rolled inwards, as Tsubasa slashes at the beast, creating an immense gash in its underbelly._

_Natsume, in the meanwhile, struck out at once of its legs, and made it fall over, whereupon the two proceeded to climb onto the Wyrm's back._

_After they both slashed out the wings of the Dragon, it shook hard, sending the two warriors flying clear off the back of the beast._

_They groaned as they rose, even as Kaname's healing abilities began to act and they recovered slowly._

_The Wyrm, now largely crippled, swiped out at Natsume, sending him flying into a wall._

_As Kaname rushed forward to save him, the Dragon suddenly bounds toward him._

_As it raised its claw to strike down the helpless healer, Tsubasa could only watch, as he was at the other end of the cavern and unable to help._

_At that point, Natsume, thought to have passed out from the Dragon's claw swipe, pushed Kaname out of the way, getting crushed in the process._

_He passed his blood-stained blade to Kaname, instructing him to give it to Tsubasa, in order to complete their quest._

_Tsubasa, having seen the whole event, rushed forward and grabbed the second blade, consumed by fury._

_He had sworn never to cry over the fallen, but the supposed death of his close comrade made him lose his previously steady and calm composure once again, filling him with the rage he had felt when his parents had died._

_He roared, echoing the anger he felt from his childhood._

_Now absolutely berserk, he jumped up and grabbed the Wyrm's neck, crawling towards its head and gouging one eye clean out._

_Even as he was thrown off seconds later, he simply rose, and continued his onslaught._

_He unleashed a full flurry of blows on the Dragon's wounded leg, bringing it down, and rushed forward, dodging the stream of fire that came from its maw as a last ditch defence measure._

_Having rolled out of the way of the stream of fire, he ran forward again, towards the rising dragon. _

_He jumped up and shoved one of his blades into the huge Wyrm's underbelly, striking at the part where he approximated the heart to be._

_He then ran the blade lengthwise along the underbelly of the Wyrm, creating a long, ragged gash that caused the Dragon to rear back in pain._

_As the Wyrm fell back down, he thrust his two blades once again into its underbelly, and finally managed to stab it in the heart._

_As the Dragon fell, it released a blast of heated air, sending Tsubasa flying away from the underbelly of the beast._

_As his body was impaled on the sharp walls of the cave, he fell to the ground, much to Kaname's horror._

_Even as the Wyrm faded away, all Kaname could see were his two seriously injured comrades. He knew, deep down, the two were beyond healing."_

The tome, at this point, describes Kaname as completely breaking down, clutching the hand of the fallen Tsubasa.

Ignoring the fact that the portal had reopened, and that the monsters had begun to retreat into it, he gathered the two critically injured warriors, who were barely conscious and beyond healing.

_"Natsume looked at Tsubasa and smiled, his face bloodied._

_He knew he was beyond healing, and so looked Tsubasa straight in the eye._

_'You… You must live. Don't… Don't you dare die on me. I was… Never your equal. But now… Now I know why you were the Chosen One. It has been an honor, Sir Andou.'_

_At that moment, Natsume finally passed on, the last of his life force having been spent."_

The tome describes the atmosphere in the cavern at that point as being solemn.

Even as Tsubasa was about to pass on as well from his injuries, Kaname came to his senses, and attempted an advanced healing technique on Tsubasa.

_"Kaname, desperate to save his best friend, attempted a final ritual on Tsubasa._

_He kissed him full on the lips, transferring part of his life force to him in order to preserve him enough in order for him to use the herbs given to him by the Witch in order to save him._

_Successful, he passes out, exhausted from the power expended during the ritual._

_Tsubasa rises at that point, and picks Kaname up, carrying him off into the distance."_

The both of them having survived, the prophecy had been fulfilled.

Natsume had fallen in defence of his beloved land, and enabled Tsubasa to finally slay the beast, ensuring that peace would return to the land.

He would be lauded as a hero in the future.

Tsubasa and Kaname returned to the Witch's hut in order to obtain their horses and to heal up, in order to travel back to Court to announce the good news.

_"In the hut, the two have an intimate conversation._

_'Why were you so desperate to save me, Kaname? That ritual could have killed you. Even now, the fact that you gave me some of your life force means that your lifespan will forever be shortened, no?'_

_'Can't you see it, Tsubasa?'_

_Kaname sighs, and looks forlornly at him._

_'I've always wanted to protect you. I've always wanted you to remain safe. I've always wanted you by my side. Do you not understand, Tsubasa? You are more than a brother to me. You are more than a best friend.'_

_'You mean-'_

_'Yes, I have loved you from the very beginning.'_

_'You never told me…'_

_'I didn't want you to feel awkward or pressured, Tsubasa.'_

_'Kaname.'_

_'Yes?'_

_'I took up my sword to avenge my parents, yes. But do you know what drove me to become a knight and take on this quest? I have always wanted you to be safe as well. I wanted to live my life peacefully with you as well. I never knew you felt the same.'_

_'You mean…'_

_'Yes. I've felt more than just brotherly kinship for you, too.'_

_At that moment, they both realized their attraction for each other._

_Under the starry sky, they embraced, kissed, and made sweet, sweet love, their passion having accumulated over their childhood, up until that point. _

_It was sweet release."_

The tome states at that point that the portal began to close, turning the remaining monsters who had not retreated at that point into dust.

It is likely that the beasts simply faded out of existence, given that the Wyrm, the commander and leader of the original incursion, had been slain, leaving them with no viable source of means to continue existing.

They venture back to the inner city in order to complete their quest.

_"From the Witch's hut they rode, back to civilization._

_With both good news, and bad, their horses kicked up clouds of dust as they returned through the forest that they came from, eager to see their quest through to completion."_


	6. Part VI: Denouement

**PART VI: The Denounement**

_"Back into the inner court they rode, lauded by one and all._

_The cheers and celebrations could be heard throughout the land, a collective sigh of relief and absolute happiness._

_With the land safe and at peace once more, festivities were at an all time high. _

_The people felt the freedom they once did before the Great Incursion._

_The land had finally been freed from the scourge of the monsters._

_Tsubasa had become a hero, along with Kaname, his lover."_

They returned to the Inner City in order to approach the court, and they were lauded as heroes, and their feat of slaying the Wyrm had been spread through the land.

The Duke himself personally thanked the heroes, though the Court was shocked to hear that Natsume had fallen in his quest.

Nevertheless, the trio were lauded as heroes, and a memorial statue of the men was commisioned in order to honour their services to the land.

The Duke, in his gratitude, gave his daughter, Mikan Yukihira, to Tsubasa in marriage; she had been Tsubasa's lady love when he had first set out on their quest, giving him her hankerchief as a sign of good luck. Both him and Kaname were also offered high positions in the court, in accordance with the great service they had done to the Kingdom.

_"Their reward was immeasureable. _

_They were given multiple honours, conferred upon them by the Duke Yukihira himself, out of great gratitude for what they did._

_However, the greatest gift of all he offered to Tsubasa._

_The hand of Mikan Yukihira, said to be one of the fairest maidens in the land, and the daughter of the Duke himself, in marriage._

_Tsubasa, while honoured, was at the same time conflicted."_

Even though their reward was immense, Tsubasa was left in a dilemma, as he knew he could not reject Mikan's hand in marriage, though he loved Kaname.

Kaname, similarly, was divided. He knew that there were consequences if they were to announce their relationship to the Duke, and he did not want Tsubasa to anger the Duke either.

_"And so, they came to a decision._

_Kaname and Tsubasa planned to elope._

_With a final request to erect a statue in honour of Shiki, the town guard, Tsubasa rejected the offer of the fair maiden's hand._

_To the surprise of the court, and the chagrin of the officials present, he presented Kaname as his one true love, and kissed him full on in front of the court._

_They immediately fled the scene, and made for their horses._

_Managing to ride away successfully, the two escaped the Kingdom to the wilderness."_

The tome ends the story here, stating in a footnote that they ended up near the Witch's abode, and they lived a happy life.

Even though they had rejected the social norms that opposed a relationship of homosexuality, they felt liberated.

The Kingdom, part in fear of them, and part in respect of their choice, chose not to chase them after they fled beyond the walls.

_"They realized that there was no greater reward then love."_

It is here that the tale ends, and the Chronicle of Tsubasa Andou, saviour of the Alice Kingdom, is officially concluded.


	7. Part VII: Notes

**Part VII: Notes**

This story represents one of the greatest stories of chivalry and fantasy from the tome, and it shows, possibly, the existence of dimensions beyond us.

If anyone should open this for study, the tome offers a much more detailed account of the story.

It has been my great pleasure to condense this tale for the sake of knowledge.

-Serina Yamada, Archivist/English Teacher.

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**Credits and Acknowledgements**

This plotline of this story is based on Attack On Titan.

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